Looking to the distant future, how will the new generation of space transportation systems be constituted? If "digital life" becomes a reality, how will this technology affect human identity, how will human relationships evolve in the digital world, and in what direction might the real future develop? Science fiction will always provide infinite possibilities for the development of science and technology. So what's next?
On April 28, the 2024 8th China Science Fiction Conference Science Fiction Frontier Technology Development Forum was held in Shougang Park, Shijingshan District.
The forum was hosted by the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission and the Zhongguancun Science and Technology Park Management Committee, co-sponsored by the Shijingshan District People's Government and Shougang Group, undertaken by Beijing Zhongguancun KONE Science and Technology Service Co., Ltd., Beijing Science and Technology Innovation Promotion Center, Shijingshan District Science and Technology Commission, Zhongguancun Science and Technology Park Shijingshan Park Management Committee, China Science Fiction Research Center, Beijing Shougang Construction Investment Co., Ltd., Beijing Yuanyu Science Fiction Future Technology Research Institute, Beichen Jingxi Science Fiction (Beijing) Exhibition Co., Ltd., and the Global Science Fiction Developers Conference are specially supported.
The forum brings together science fiction creators, well-known scholars in the frontier field of science and technology, and young leading entrepreneurs, focusing on the future development direction of artificial intelligence, quantum information, aerospace, new materials, etc., combined with the perspective of experts in the industrial field, to fully discuss how science fiction creativity can help the development of cutting-edge technology in science and technology.
Dong Qichao, deputy director of the Municipal Science and Technology Commission and Zhongguancun Management Committee, delivered an opening speech. In his speech, he pointed out that in recent years, with the strong support of the Municipal Party Committee and Municipal Government, Beijing's science fiction industry has insisted on exploring a new track for the integration and development of science and technology and culture, implemented the strategy of scientific and technological innovation and cross-border integration, and achieved rapid development of science fiction cutting-edge technology, and has made great progress in many science fiction technology application fields such as artificial intelligence, optical and visual technology, and digital creation, and has become an important force in promoting the development of scientific and technological innovation and cultural creativity. Looking forward to the future, the Municipal Science and Technology Commission and the Zhongguancun Management Committee will continue to strengthen the support and guidance for the cutting-edge technological innovation of science fiction, focus on making up for shortcomings, strengths and weaknesses, and excellent services, and promote more strategic and leading innovation breakthroughs in the field of science fiction cutting-edge technology.
Two major releases
Focus on the development of science fiction industry in Shijingshan District
During the event, Li Wenhua, member of the Party Leadership Group and deputy head of the People's Government of Shijingshan District, Beijing, released the action plan for promoting the development of science fiction industry in Shijingshan District (2024-2025). It was mentioned in the release that Shijingshan District adheres to promoting industrial innovation with scientific and technological innovation, helping regional transformation with industrial innovation, and accelerating the development of new quality productivity. In 2023, Shijingshan District's GDP will increase by 7% year-on-year, of which the digital economy will account for more than 51%. Since the signing of a strategic cooperation agreement between the China Association for Science and Technology and Beijing in 2020, Shijingshan District has always adhered to the China Science Fiction Convention as a medium, made every effort to build a policy system, and accelerated the development of science fiction enterprise clusters. By the end of 2025, new breakthroughs will be made in the innovation and development of the science fiction industry, the construction of the ecological system, and the enhancement of brand influence, so as to build a higher level of creative exchange and product development platform, and create a science fiction industry agglomeration area with international influence, industry leadership and economic driving force.
Chen Shang, general manager of Beijing Shougang Construction Investment Co., Ltd., released the development of the science fiction industry in Shougang Park. At the 2020 China Science Fiction Convention, the China Association for Science and Technology and the Beijing Municipal People's Government signed a cooperation agreement, and the 2021 China Science Fiction Convention released a number of initiatives. In this context, cities, districts, and enterprises cooperate efficiently and resonate at the same frequency to jointly promote the vigorous development of the science fiction industry. Shougang Park has now become an important undertaking place for the development of China's science fiction industry and an important window for the innovation display of science fiction industry. Up to now, 124 companies have settled in the science fiction industry cluster, of which 90% are science fiction enterprises, 3 are listed companies, 12 are national high-tech enterprises, and 3 are specialized and special new enterprises. Shougang Park will build an industrial ecosystem of "one body, four wings and six dimensions" and form an enterprise service system of "industrial empowerment + characteristic synergy", and strive to provide enterprises with rich science fiction application scenarios and carrier resources.
Keynote Speech
Celebrities gather - interpret cutting-edge technology from a sci-fi perspective
This forum invited well-known scholars in the field of cutting-edge science and technology at home and abroad to give wonderful keynote reports to the guests, interpret science fiction ideas with deep scientific and technological accumulation, and lay a solid scientific and technological foundation for the science fiction industry. There are 4 sessions in this event, each of which includes a keynote report and a roundtable discussion. Focusing on different themes, the guests made wonderful speeches and heated discussions, and jointly made suggestions for the development of the science fiction industry.
Session 1: International Cooperation on Cutting-edge Science Fiction Technology - Looking Forward to the Great Harmony of Mankind
Vladimir Norov, President of the Central Asian Association for Artificial Intelligence, former Secretary General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan, said that science fiction plays an indispensable role in guiding technological progress, encouraging the fields of science, business and policy to break down barriers between disciplines and industries, thereby creating a mature environment for cooperation. At the same time, science fiction has become a driving force for global technological innovation and fostered international cooperation by stimulating creativity, anticipating future trends, and promoting new ideas.
Sanfeng, Project Director of the School of Social Sciences of the University of Hong Kong, Visiting Scholar of Southern University of Science and Technology, and Distinguished Expert of China Science Fiction Research Center, introduced the current situation and trend of science and technology empowering science fiction cultural industry innovation to the guests. He mentioned that as a pioneer industry in the integration of culture and technology, the science fiction industry has a natural and strong demand for scientific and technological innovation, and science fiction content and science fiction IP have become the preferred enabling objects of scientific and technological innovation in the cultural industry.
Session 2: Cutting-edge Space Technology - Rushing to the Sea of Stars
Deng Yulin, academician of the International Academy of Astronautics, chair professor of Beijing Institute of Technology, and chairman of the Aeronautical Medical Engineering Committee of the Chinese Society of Astronautics, used the creative theme of "Guide to Human Space Life" to analyze the hot topics in the aerospace field in detail, and showed the realization of the human aerospace dream, aerospace medicine, microbial protection, and aerospace biomedical technology transformation in front of the audience.
Wu Ji, director of the Academic Committee of the National Space Science Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, chairman of the Chinese Space Science Society, and science fiction writer, gave a detailed interpretation of the development of space technology with the theme of the new development of space science and space technology. And take the classic problems in the field of aerospace as the starting point, and extend to the development status of new aerospace. Wu Ji mentioned that the aerospace industry is gradually developing towards commercial aerospace.
Session 3: Cutting-edge digital technology - digital immortality and the future of mankind
Antonio Frisoli, President of the Italian National Competence Center for Robotics (Artes 4.0) and a full-time professor at the Institut des Hautes Etudes et Studies, Santa Anna, Pisa, was invited to share his experience in the field of robotics. In the sharing, Antonio mentioned that we were pleasantly surprised to see that China has an international leading robot market, and the investment and research on this proves the potential and future of the robot market.
Wang Yuanzhuo, a researcher at the Institute of Computing Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, director of the Science Popularization Working Committee of the China Computer Federation, and vice chairman of the China Science Writers Association, introduced the outstanding performance of artificial intelligence in the field of education and entertainment, analyzed the advantages and disadvantages of several popular artificial intelligence products, and mentioned that the development of science and technology will bring infinite possibilities.
Tian Feng, president of SenseTime Intelligent Industry Research Institute, used a bolder way of expression, in his sharing, Tian Feng regarded artificial intelligence robots as a new species, and he proposed that the first half of AI2.0 is "knowledge engineering", and the second half is "industrial revolution". Tian Feng gave an example to analyze the characteristics of various types of intelligent robots in the current market, and said that intelligent robots have broad market prospects and are a kind of "new intelligence" productivity. And artificial intelligence will become the "ticket" for the earth's civilization to run to the sea of stars.
Session 4: Science Fiction and Cutting-edge Technology - Imagining the Future World
Wu Yan, a professor and doctoral supervisor of Southern University of Science and Technology, director of the Research Center for Science and Human Imagination of Southern University of Science and Technology, and a science fiction writer, expressed his thoughts on the science fiction industry, and he believes that although the total value of the science fiction industry has exceeded 100 billion yuan for the first time, there is still a lot of room for development.
Chang Kai, executive director and researcher of Beijing Institute of Quantum Information Science, shared the development from quantum mechanics to the second quantum science and technology revolution, using semiconductors, integrated circuit industry, magnetic storage, big data and other industries as cases to tell how some emerging industries were founded under the guidance of quantum mechanics and gradually emerged.
Weiqi Wang, a big data scientist and science fiction writer at Stanford University, shared the topic of China's science fiction going overseas with the guests and audience. Among them, it is not difficult to see his confidence and expectations in Chinese science fiction, he mentioned that Chinese science fiction is still facing challenges, and its influence in the international community needs to be improved, but Chinese science fiction has unique advantages.
Roundtable Discussion
Big names gathered to talk about the development of the science fiction industry
Roundtable 1: The Singularity of Science and Technology and New Opportunities for Industry
Under the chairmanship of Long Huadong, Deputy Director of the Culture and Technology Department (Science Popularization Department) of the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission and the Zhongguancun Science Park Management Committee, Vladimir Norov and Mitutoyo discussed new opportunities for the future industry with Xia Haiming, a famous Spanish sinologist, translator and translator of the Spanish "Three-Body Problem", and Li Bingxu, founder and representative director of Soft AI and professor at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST). Focusing on the impact of science fiction on science and technology, the four guests and the host spoke freely and put forward their own ideas on how to strengthen the international cooperation of science fiction cutting-edge technology in the future.
Roundtable 2: Exploring Future Space Technologies
In the second round table meeting, Wu Ji, Cao Meng, Vice President and CTO of Emposat and Yang Feng, Founder and CEO of Tianyi Research Institute, and Lin Yuzhi, Executive Deputy Director of the Science and Film and Television Integration Committee of the China Science Popularization Association, conducted an in-depth analysis of the future development of space technology. The guests took space technology as the starting point and imagined the future space transportation system.
Roundtable 3: Artificial Intelligence and Digital Life, Science and Technology Ethics and the Future of Mankind
The third roundtable discussion was moderated by Antonio Frisoli, Tian Feng and Wang Yuanzhuo, Yao Haijun, deputy editor-in-chief and editor-in-chief of Science Fiction World magazine, founder of the Chinese Science Fiction Nebula Awards, and honorary chairman of the Organizing Committee of the Chinese Science Fiction Nebula Awards, and Yang Yue, director of the E-sports Research Office of the Institute of Sports Science of the General Administration of Sport of China. Explore the future of digital life. Based on their own professional characteristics, the guests talked about their understanding of digital life and had in-depth discussions on the problems that may arise in digital life.
Round Table 4: Imagine the future in "The Three-Body Problem".
Liu Cixin, a well-known science fiction writer and winner of the Hugo Award, participated in the final roundtable discussion. Wu Yan, Chang Kai, Wang Weiqi and Ren Hongxuan, Director of the Scientific and Technological Achievements Division of the National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, and a well-known popular science writer and scholar in the field of nanotechnology, participated in the discussion. Chen Qiufan, writer, screenwriter, translator, curator, deputy director of the Science Fiction Literature Committee of the China Writers Association, and vice chairman of the China Science Popularization Writers Association, presided over the roundtable. Liu Cixin conceived a variety of future technologies and science fiction imaginations in "The Three-Body Problem", using the Three-Body Problem as a template, the guests discussed, chatted about the possibilities of these technologies, and imagined the future of science fiction and the future development direction of science and technology.
Looking forward to the future, with the rapid development of science and technology, more science fiction imagination will become a reality. This sci-fi cutting-edge technology development forum provides a platform for cross-border exchanges among industry experts, scholars and sci-fi practitioners, focusing on the integrated development of sci-fi and science and technology, discussing the path and strategy of sci-fi creativity empowering scientific and technological innovation, stimulating scientific and technological innovation inspiration, sorting out cutting-edge technology development ideas, and promoting the integration of sci-fi creativity and cutting-edge technology, and promoting the development of new productive forces in the capital's sci-fi industry.